A special WashCOG report released today is a call to action for civic leaders, organizations, businesses and all Washingtonians to work together to preserve the state’s Public Records Act.

2023 was a landmark year for the Washington Coalition for Open Government. We saw warning signs of eroding transparency in the state, but also the sunlight of new resources. We have additional staff, a new office and a special report on our challenges and opportunities.

The first newsletter of the year offers a variety of updates on WashCOG’s activities, including our increased presence in Olympia during the legislative session and our plans for promoting access in 2024.

Reserve your tickets now to join us at WashCOG’s annual Sunshine Breakfast honoring outstanding advocates of access. The event takes place March 15, 2024 at T-Mobile Park.

The Washington Coalition for Open Government is urging proponents of state transparency to scrutinize and speak out regarding House Bill 2307, which would impose additional steps for processing public records requests and rein in penalties and fees when an agency fails to fulfill a request.

Listen to the Sunshine Committee’s pro-transparency recommendations and to its ongoing advice, require committees to meet in public, eschew “legislative privilege” and protect the 52-year-old Public Records Act are among WashCOG’s top priorities for legislative action during the 2024 regular legislative session.

During this time of celebration and joy, please remember the coalition is still a small organization, fighting a truly David and Goliath battle on your behalf in protecting the People’s Right to Know against the unlimited resources of the government committed to darkness. With lack of transparency and darkness comes the failure of our democracy. Please help us in our fight for the United States of America here in Washington.

WashCOG is now accepting nominations until Jan. 19, 2024 for its annual Kenneth F. Bunting Award for outstanding journalism in the interest of government transparency. The Bunting Award recognizes journalists and media outlets for work that uses or advances Washington state’s open government laws, or educates citizens about them.

Entries are being accepted for WashCOG’s annual Open Government contest for high school students, this year expanded to welcome multimedia messages about access issues. Students may submit videos, podcasts, posters or essays. Entries are due March 5, 2024.

Washington state legislators can deny access to public records under an expanded definition of “legislative privilege,” a Thurston County Superior Court judge ruled Nov. 17, 2023. The ruling came in the case of Jamie Nixon and the Washington Coalition for Open Government v. the State of Washington.

Thurston County Superior Court will this week consider whether the state legislators have a legal privilege to withhold public information, despite a 2019 Washington State Supreme Court ruling that they are covered by the PRA.

Bolstered by the largest single donation in its history, WashCOG is launching Right2Know, a campaign to raise awareness of eroding government transparency and fight to open doors for oversight.

The newest issue of our newsletter shines light on recent efforts to weaken Washington’s sunshine laws, and suggests what we should be asking our elected officials about ensuring access.

WashCOG has joined with a citizen requester to sue the state of Washington because Washington’s legislators claim that they have a legislative privilege to conduct the people’s business in private and withhold public records from public scrutiny.

The Coalition strenuously objects to SHB1533, a well-intentioned bill intended to protect crime victims. But it’s so monumentally overbroad that it would allow any employee of a state agency, including K-12 education, to opt out of the public record — and disappear from accountability.

The Coalition recognized outstanding efforts for the cause of open government over the past year, presenting a variety of awards at its annual Sunshine Breakfast attended by a record crowd of supporters.

March 12-18 is Sunshine Week, intended to raise awareness of the resources that promote open government. WashCOG is one of many organizations with activities (such as our annual Sunshine Breakfast) to promote and celebrate sunshine laws and practices.

The League of Women Voters is sharing the findings of its study on the effects of diminishing news media on government oversight. The League is also weighing taking a stand to advocate for assistance to bolster community media.

A WashCOG board member and local attorney is concerned that the legislature isn’t heeding their research about PRA exemptions.

Les Zaitz, a prominent Oregon journalists and fierce advocate for access, is the keynote speaker at WashCOG’s annual Sunshine Breakfast on March 17 in Seattle.